guys these are great stories. . .but Mr. AK you gotta change the title of the thread so it doesnt get closed. . .I know a few people who are going to take offense to the title. . .for one, ///Mantis is 75% mentally handicapped.

Again we apologize to all who were upset by the reference in the Title. I think it was all in good fun and wasn't meant to target the innocent or the handicap. It WAS however meant to target the FOOLS described in these great stories above. On a side note....with all due respect i must say that if a small incident like this gets to you, then I'm not sure how you make it through the work day because this is nothing. Have fun....drive fast!

I have been biting my lip for days....."retarded" and "retard" are pejorative terms and are best avoided...

Mods...you won't tolerate racism and/or pornography...many members find these words just as offensive...

Take it easy man. This post was never intended to make fun of mentally challenged people. People are so sensitive to stuff now. I'm crippled from having the left side of my pelvis removed because of cancer but I don't get all worked up over stupid stuff like that when people say handicapped vs crippled vs disabled. Who cares! The way I look at it, if you can't laugh about it, you're in for a life of misery.

I'm sure the other poster's son wouldn't want his Dad going around pointing out the fact that people use the word retarded vs mentally challenged if he had a say. It only draws more attention to the unfortunate situation which is what we don't want. Just treat us like any normal person. There is no need to keep pointing out the fact the we are different.

What I can't stand is idiots that don't really care for cars in general. You know, the dude that just buys a junker to get from point A to B and could care less about it and would never buy a bad ass car like our M3's? But most of all is when they say, "I can't belive you spent 60G's on that car" So I just look at them and nod my head at them, smirk and say, "you wouldn't understand" and walk off or change the subject. Why argue with an idiot?

What I can't stand is idiots that don't really care for cars in general. You know, the dude that just buys a junker to get from point A to B and could care less about it and would never buy a bad ass car like our M3's? But most of all is when they say, "I can't believe you spent 60G's on that car" So I just look at them and nod my head at them, smirk and say, "you wouldn't understand" and walk off or change the subject. Why argue with an idiot?

Or when they describe your car as a "look at me car". oOOoh.. boils my blood! If I wanted a look at me car I'd buy an S class and hang out at the Starbucks.. freakin idiots!!

Man, I was laughing so hard and I shared the story with my wife, and she said, "did he ask the salesman to drive the GLI and race him against the M3." I think that would have shut him up. Did you buy a car from him?
also, that makes me think what people did to the used cars I bought in the past before I bought them. I am so glad my baby was a "virgin" when I got her.

Probably not going to buy the car from the guy, he was kind of a snob about the sales process and wasn't willing to sell much under MSRP, citing heavy demand as a factor (right, people are just lining up out the door to pay sticker for a GLI). I'm really pushing for the Mini.

And no, haha, didn't have a chance to race the guy. My M3 is debadged but I don't think he would have known what it was either way. I asked him how big the front brake rotors were on the GLI when he was spouting off about how insane the brakes were in the showroom and he just gave me a blank stare. What a douche.

I don't really want to take sides here. Since I do not have any close friends or relatives that are mentally challenged, I'll never be able to fully understand where you guys are coming from, but I will respect your boundaries.

However, having looked at that wikipedia page of archaic and offensive terms, do you refrain from saying "idiot" or "moron" as well? They also previously were common terms used to identify the mentally challenged, but slowly and informally made their way into everyday vernacular. Are these just politically correct ways to jokingly call someone stupid, or is it actually the same as calling someone "retarded?"

When I changed from the HRE 540R's to HRE P40's, I had somebody come up to me and say "those are ugly; the holes in them are too big that you can see right through them; I don't want to see the brakes (brembo's); you should have gotten something that covered up the brakes."

LOL. . .I was just checking out your thread from the other day when you got your new wheels. . .that's too damn funny

Mr. AK, please be sure not to use any of the following as well, and to use the more politically correct terminology. I wouldn't want you to get into more trouble (taken from newspeakdictionary.com):

Broken Home - Replaced by Dysfunctional family.

Bum - Replaced by Homeless Person.Calling a person a "Bum" implies that the person is a moocher that is too lazy to get a job. Referring to him as a "Homeless Person" removes this stigma, and implies that he would be a perfectly normal citizen if only the government would give him a house. (See :State-Socialism)

Crazy - Replaced by the term Mental Illness. And, since it is an illness, it may be treated in the same manner as other diseases - with drugs. Of course, this idea is nothing new ... people have been using drugs to treat depression for centuries.

Criminal - Replaced by behaviorally challenged. This is one change that makes sense. A lot of the people in prisons today are not really "criminals" in the classic sense. Thanks to the "War on Drugs", there are a lot of people in jail because they failed to "behave" properly.

Eastern (As when used when discussing Asian Culture) - Too Eurocentric. Instead, use Africa as your frame of reference. When discussing European culture you should now use the phase "Northern", and when discussing Asia use the phrase "North-Eastern". Now isn't that better?

Factory - Replaced by Plant. The word Factory is a place where mistreated laborers toil long hours to produce pollution that billows forth from gigantic smokestacks. The word Plant is preferred since it is more difficult for this term to carry a negative connotation since this term is also used to describe nature. Its counterpart noun describes plant life (Plants, as in flowers, shrubs, etc). And the Verb form, to plant, is the process of lovingly placing a seed in the ground so it may one day grow into a mighty oak. Who can complain about having a new plant in their backyard?

Failure - Replaced by Deferred Success.

Fairy - Homophobic. Replaced by Petite airborne humanoid which possesses magical powers. The term fairy should be avoided when discussing these mythical beings, regardless of how gay they may appear.

Fat - Replaced by Enlarged physical condition caused by a completely natural genetically-induced hormone imbalance. Of course, this is very difficult to say in one breath-- so people will find it easier to not say it at all. The term "fat" is simply too short and to direct. It all too clearly points out that the reason that an obese person's skin appears so swollen is because it is being buttressed by large amounts of... well... Fat.

Foreign Food - Replaced by Ethnic Cuisine. The word foreign is generally used when one wishes to refer to something that alien to ones own country -- something that is not normally found within the jurisdiction of your own particular political unit. But with the increasing power of multinational organizations (such as the U.N. and large corporations), nothing can be said to be truly 'foreign' anymore. In a world where you can find a McDonald's in Moscow, a Disneyland in Japan, or a single currency throughout Europe, the word 'Foreign' is losing its meaning.
The word 'ethnic' provides a more accurate way to refer to these cultural traits which are continually growing fainter as we move away from the world of the past, in which different areas of the world were actually unique.

Founding Fathers - Too Sexist. Instead, use the term The Founders. We wouldn't want to exclude all those great female leaders of 18th century America would we?

Ghetto - Replaced by Economically disadvantaged area. This term is used by politicians who believe money from the Government would solve their problems. (See : State-Socialism)

Girlfriend/Wife - Replaced by Unpaid sex worker

Handicapped - Replaced by Physically Challenged, or even worse, handicapable

Home-ec (Home Economics) - Replaced by Family and Consumer Sciences, and I'm really not sure why. These classes have been taught in school since the early 1900's after Ellen Swallow Richards, an old-time feminist and the first woman to graduate from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, formed the American Home Economics Association in 1909. But I suppose that the reason for the change has something to do with the fact that Home-Ec is generally considered a 'girly' class, and is therefore sexist.

Housewife - Replaced by Domestic Engineer. This is to remove the necessity of marriage from the task of raising children.

Illegal Aliens – Replaced by Undocumented Immigrants. The phrase ‘Illegal Aliens’ implies that these people are a bunch of law-breaking creatures from outer space, while ‘Undocumented Immigrants’ suggests that they are good old-fashioned immigrants that simply have not gone through the hassle of being ‘documented’ yet.

Janitor - Replaced by Custodial Artist. No matter what you call it, this is a person who is paid to clean up shit.

Jungle - Replaced by Rainforest. A Rainforest is a happy place where Disney characters dance and sing ... a jungle is a scary place with lions, tigers, malaria and natives that want to cut off your head and boil it for dinner... who in their right mind would want to save that!?!

Lumberjack - Replaced by Murderer.

Man’s Job and Woman’s Work - Replaced by Traditional Gender Role. These are basic practices that are followed in one form or another by most of the life forms on this planet, and have been part of human culture for thousands of years… and as with most other ‘traditions’, a lot of people believe that it is time for a change.

Midget - Replaced by Vertically Challenged.

Natural Disaster - replaced by Unnatural Event caused by man's destruction of the environment. Every hurricane, mudslide, and flood sould be blamed on Global Warming, even though these events have been occurring for millions of years. (I'm still waiting for somebody to blame the last Ice Age on the campfires of cavemen)

Psycho - Replaced by Pathologically High-Spirited

Secretary - Replaced by Administrative Assistant – The word Secretary comes from Latin and means ‘Confidential Officer’ – And for some unknown reason this is a bad thing.

Sex Change - Replaced by gender re-assignment.

Swamp - Replaced by Wetland. Swamps are full alligators, bugs, and disease. If anybody went around saying that we need to "save the swamps", people would think they were out of their friggin' mind!

However, having looked at that wikipedia page of archaic and offensive terms, do you refrain from saying "idiot" or "moron" as well? They also previously were common terms used to identify the mentally challenged, but slowly and informally made their way into everyday vernacular. Are these just politically correct ways to jokingly call someone stupid, or is it actually the same as calling someone "retarded?"

The context to which this is referring is that these terms are no longer used to classify people with intellectual disabilities based on IQ. The classifications are state dependent, but ususally are mild, moderate and severe intellectually disability.

On the other hand, tt is very depressing to see that the puritans come to bother us all the way here whenever the intention of the thread was obviously not about making fun of people suffering from any medical condition, but, hey, let's not pay attention to that and let's keep bringing up some funny ones!

The context to which this is referring is that these terms are no longer used to classify people with intellectual disabilities based on IQ. The classifications are state dependent, but ususally are mild, moderate and severe intellectually disability.

As Forest Gump says...."Stupid is as stupid does..."

And to continue on with the historic precident, soon "learning disabled" will enter the vernacular of grade school playgrounds and become offensive and politically incorrect, the professionals will come up with some other description, and "retarded" will join idiot, moron, etc. as a general description, offensive to no one (except maybe the person it is directed at). I guess the OP could be considered to be ahead of his time.

And to continue on with the historic precident, soon "learning disabled" will enter the vernacular of grade school playgrounds and become offensive and politically incorrect, the professionals will come up with some other description, and "retarded" will join idiot, moron, etc. as a general description, offensive to no one (except maybe the person it is directed at). I guess the OP could be considered to be ahead of his time.

or maybe his time has already come. I knew what he meant. I did not think it reffered to a disabled person.

guys these are great stories. . .but Mr. AK you gotta change the title of the thread so it doesnt get closed. . .I know a few people who are going to take offense to the title. . .for one, ///Mantis is 75% mentally handicapped.

handicapped went out years ago as un-pc and offensive. YOU ARE BANNED!!!

Take it easy man. This post was never intended to make fun of mentally challenged people. People are so sensitive to stuff now. I'm crippled from having the left side of my pelvis removed because of cancer but I don't get all worked up over stupid stuff like that when people say handicapped vs crippled vs disabled. Who cares! The way I look at it, if you can't laugh about it, you're in for a life of misery.

I'm sure the other poster's son wouldn't want his Dad going around pointing out the fact that people use the word retarded vs mentally challenged if he had a say. It only draws more attention to the unfortunate situation which is what we don't want. Just treat us like any normal person. There is no need to keep pointing out the fact the we are different.

This is the very FIRST time I have 'checked' someone on this issue. I do not volunteer or draw attention to my son's condition to anyone who does not need to know. I am extremely proud of him - he is an extremely happy child, and I am an extremely happy father. My wife and I treat him as 'normal' because he is normal to us. The point was not that the term 'retarded' was used, but the context. If someone were to refer to my son or anyone else as 'retarded' and the intent was to describe his condition, not to make light of it or ridicule him, it would not generate the slightest reaction from me. I don't care to elaborate on the issue, as the lame excuses, unfunny PC jokes and anti-PC sermons such as those already stated will merely be repeated - nor do I wish to further the thread-jacking that I initiated.

To answer another poster's comment - the downfall of Western civilization will be the lack of respect for individuals and life in general, not PC.

Mr. AK (OP) - thank you for the apology. I can tell it is sincere, and it is water under the bridge as far as I'm concerned.